We Are
by Lily Lorelei
Summary: We are teenagers finding ourselves in a steadily darkening world. We are children and adults, confident and conflicted. We are Hogwarts, class of 1978. --Complete inside. NOTE: This story is undergoing rewrite. Please look at my profile for more info!
1. Chapter 1: Where We Began

**We Are**

Lily Lorelei

We are teenagers finding ourselves in a steadily darkening world. We are children and adults, confident and conflicted. We are different and we are the same. We are brave, ambitious, loyal and clever, arrogant, selfish, foolish and haughty. We are lovers and fighters and friends. We are Hogwarts, class of 1978.

**A/N: Hello, everyone! I'm Lily Lorelei; pleased to meet you. This is the first chapter of my story. I have a couple more chapters written, but updates will be rather unpredictable due to my hectic RL. Still, I hope you enjoy it. Thank you to Slytheringirlandproud for looking this over for me. Enjoy!**

**Chapter 1: Where We Began**

"See ya, Snivellus!"

Lily Evans slammed the compartment door behind Severus as he hurried out into the corridor of the Hogwarts Express. "Ugh," she commented disdainfully. "Whatever house I'm in, I certainly hope _they_ aren't in it."

Severus nodded in agreement as Lily led the way towards the opposite end of the train. As they approached a compartment door on their left opened and a round-faced, friendly-looking girl stepped out. A small black-and-white cat tried to sneak out behind her, but she turned and spotted him. "Oh, no you don't, James! Stay put." She poked him gently with her foot. Lily let out a gasp of delight.

"Oh, what a beautiful kitty!" The girl looked up.

"Oh, hello! Yes, this is James. He's not mine; he's Mimi's. He is gorgeous, isn't he?"

"Gorgeous and troublesome!" came a girl's voice from inside the compartment. "Come here, James! Let Alice use the loo in peace." Another girl with brown pigtails came and scooped up the cat. "Hello," she said to Lily and Severus. "Were you looking for the loo? It's down at the other end."

"Um, no, actually," said Lily. "We were looking for a place to sit. Is there room?"

"Sure," said the girl. "Come on in."

"I'll be just a minute," said Alice, stepping past them. Lily and Severus followed the other girl into the compartment where two other girls already sat.

"Hey, people, this is…who are you guys?" asked the pigtailed girl, setting James down after making sure that the compartment door was firmly shut.

"Oh, I'm Lily Evans," said Lily.

"Severus Snape," said Severus, looking highly uncomfortable in a compartment full of girls.

"Nice to meet you," said a tall blond girl by the window. "I'm Emma Allan."

"Mary MacDonald." A pretty brunette next to Emma waved.

"I'm Mimi Stewart and you've already met Alice Smalls," said Mimi. "And James, of course." James was washing his paws on the floor in a corner, trying to look aloof. "You're first-years too, right?"

"Yes," Lily answered. She and Severus sat silently for a while. Alice came back and the four girls struck up a conversation about Hogwarts. Emma and Alice clearly knew more about the school than the other two and were relaying information collected from parents, siblings and the like. Lily listened eagerly. Severus alternated between fidgeting restlessly and staring at Lily, whose green eyes were alight in rapt attention.

"Does it make a difference that we're Muggleborn?" asked Mary at one point. "Seems like Mimi and I are at a disadvantage."

"It doesn't make a difference," Lily put in, glad to have an answer. "Severus told me we'll be just fine."

"It _shouldn't_ make a difference," Alice agreed with a glance at Severus, who was staring out the window, pretending not to listen. "You might get a bit of grief from some of the Slytherins, but just ignore them."

"What's the matter with Slytherins?" asked Lily, annoyed but curious.

"Slytherins get a bad reputation for pure-blood mania," Emma explained.

Lily frowned. "I didn't know that. Is that true, Severus?"

Severus glanced up. "No…well, some do, but…" he trailed off feebly and shrugged.

Lily frowned at him for a moment longer, before Mimi interjected. "Well, whatever happens, we can deal, right?" There was a murmur of agreement from the other three. "So you're Muggleborn too then, Lily?" Lily nodded. "And you're pureblood?" she asked Severus.

"Yea—No, I'm half," Severus admitted reluctantly, as Lily turned to look at him.

"Me, too," Emma said. She glanced around. "Hang on. Mimi, where did James go?"

Mimi glanced around and groaned. "James, you pest! He must have got out when Alice came back. I had better go and look for him."

"We'll help," said Mary. Lily nodded in agreement.

"Why don't we split up and look in opposite directions?" she suggested. "And one person can stay here in case he comes back."

"We could do that, Lily," Severus spoke up.

"Sure, Sev. Why don't you stay here and I'll check down that way," said Lily, pointing to the right.

"That's not what I—" Severus began, but Lily wasn't listening.

"I'll go that way with you, Lily," offered Mimi. "We can take opposite sides."

"Then Mary, Alice and I will go the other direction, since it's longer," Emma finished. "All right, everyone, let's find that cat!" The girls left the compartment and scattered. Severus sighed and resumed his gloomy staring out of the window into the cloudy Scottish sky.

* * *

"So, any of you know any good spells?" James Potter asked during a lull in the conversation. He glanced around the compartment at his newly found comrades.

Quiet Peter Pettigrew shook his head and looked to the other two expectantly. "Sadly, no harmless ones," said Sirius Black wryly. "Or even only mildly painful." James gave him an odd look. "Not that I've actually tried any of them," said Sirius quickly. "But my dear mother insisted that I be able to 'protect' myself. The demonstrations were not pretty."

"That's got to be illegal," said Matthew Donohue. Sirius shrugged. "Well, I got nothing," Matthew continued. "Sadly, the one time I was able to get my hands on a wand, I got caught before anything interesting happened. I think my parents were more interested in protecting me—and my siblings—from myself."

James laughed. "I've got one. Learnt it from a cousin." He glanced out the open door of their compartment and gave a cocky grin. "Watch this." James muttered a spell under his breath and flicked his wand at a passing older girl. She stumbled as if someone had tripped her. The boys snickered and she scowled at them, embarrassed.

Just then James spotted a small black-and-white cat padding down the corridor. "Do cats trip?" asked Sirius, his grey eyes glinting with mischief.

"Let's find out." James grinned and flicked his wand again. The cat gave a startled meow as he fell, his nose hitting the carpet with a thump.

"Weird!" Peter exclaimed. James glanced at him, surprised, and he turned pink and fell silent.

"Let's see if that cat likes chocolate frogs," Sirius said, opening one. He set the frog down on the floor near the door. "Here, kitty."

The cat, who had been washing his paws in an attempt to regain his dignity, caught sight of the frog hopping into the hall and pounced.

James and his friends laughed. "Give him another," Matthew suggested.

Suddenly a red-headed girl scooped up the cat. "James!" she exclaimed.

"How do you know my name?" James frowned.

The girl turned. "Oh, it's you," she said with distaste, and James recognized her as the haughty first-year who had left his compartment some time before. "What have you been doing to this poor cat?" she demanded accusingly.

"Do you know how funny cats look when you trip them with a spell?" Matthew asked, grinning.

"You _what_?" said the red-head indignantly.

James smacked Matthew upside the head ("Hey!") and smirked. "We were just playing with him, princess; no need to get fussy."

The girl scowled at him and turned her attention to the cat squirming in her arms. She frowned in concern. "What have you got in your mouth, kitty?"

"Oh, yeah," said Sirius off-handedly. "We gave him a chocolate frog to chase."

She gasped. "Cats can't eat chocolate, you half-wit! It's poisonous to them!"

"Really? We didn't know. He only ate one," Matthew offered. "Will he be all right?" Peter nodded worriedly. Sirius and James tried to look unconcerned, but listened for the girl's answer.

"He should be fine, no thanks to you," she said, glaring.

A blue-eyed brunette came out of the compartment opposite them. "No luck yet, Lily—Oh, good, you've found him! We've been looking all over for you, James."

James looked at her, confused again. "Do I know you?"

"No, and I'm terribly sorry about my cat—"

"Don't be," Lily interrupted, green eyes flashing. "They were feeding him chocolate—"

"We didn't know," Sirius argued.

"—_after_ they tripped him with a spell," Lily finished, glaring daggers at Sirius.

"A tripping spell?" Lily's friend laughed, much to Lily's annoyance. "Well, no harm done, I suppose. Think you'd teach me? I'm Mimi Stewart, by the way."

"James Potter, at your service," said James, grinning cockily.

"James, really? That's funny—oh, no you don't!" Mimi picked up the cat, which had jumped out of Lily's arms and was headed for the door. "James, meet James," Mimi said, waving the cat's paw at James.

James laughed. "And this is Peter Pettigrew, Matthew Donohue, and Sirius Black," he continued, indicating each in turn. Peter waved, and Matthew grinned and nodded. Sirius stood and gave a sweeping bow.

Mimi laughed and curtseyed back, dropping the cat. "And it's…Lily, right? Friend of Snivellus?" Mimi's eyebrow's knit in confusion and she looked at Lily questioningly.

Lily narrowed her eyes and ignored Mimi. "Lily Evans, yes," she said coldly.

"Charmed," said James, smirking.

Lily raised one eyebrow. "We had better go and find the others, Mimi," she said. "We need to change before we get there."

"Oh, right," said Mimi. "James, stop wriggling or I'll put you back in your basket. See you later," she said to the boys.

"See ya," said James. Sirius and Matthew echoed him. "See ya, princess," James called to Lily. She made no reply as she flounced out of sight. Mimi smiled once more and followed.

* * *

Lily let out a huff as she strode down the corridor. "Well, that was interesting," Mimi commented laughingly.

"Why don't you take him back to the compartment," Lily suggested, indicating James. "And I'll go find the other girls."

"All right," said Mimi. Lily hurried ahead and Mimi stopped at their compartment door. Shifting James to one arm, she barely managed to pry the door open and toss him inside. She slipped in quickly before he could escape again and slammed the door behind her. "You, sir, are more trouble than you're worth." She turned around and saw Lily's black-haired friend glancing up at her.

"Oh, hi. Almost forgot about you. What's your name again?"

The scrawny boy scowled. "Severus Snape," he said shortly. "Where's Lily?"

Mimi paused at the name. "Oh, you're _Severus_," she said in realization, blue eyes sparkling with laughter. He narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "Lily went to find Mary, Alice and Emma."

Severus turned to the window again without another word. Mimi sat across from him and swung her legs. After a moment she grew bored and started pelting Severus with questions. He gave her reluctant, monosyllabic answers until she finally said, "What are you, antisocial?"

He glanced up sharply, glaring at her. "Maybe I simply have nothing to say to you, M—"

"James, you dolt, you've caused us a lot of trouble today!" Severus broke off as the other four girls reentered the compartment. "And we still have to change into our robes before we get there."

"Oh, right!" said Lily. "Hey, Sev, think you'd mind leaving for a bit?"

Severus shrugged and left without a word. Mimi frowned as she watched him go.

* * *

"Firs' years! Firs' years, over here!"

Emma hopped off the train and looked around for the source of the voice. Catching sight of a huge man holding a lamp and beckoning, she headed towards him. Her companions followed her. Emma could hear Mimi's cat yowling his protests at being stuck in his basket again.

The man, who introduced himself as Hagrid, led the way toward a wooden dock by which a number of small boats stood waiting. "Go on then, all of yeh. Four to a boat," said Hagrid.

Emma climbed into the nearest boat and sat facing the shore. Mary, Lily and Severus climbed in after her. "We'll take this one, then," said Alice, grabbing hold of the boat to the left of Emma. She and Mimi clambered in, nearly the last people left on the dock.

"Mind if I come, too?" asked a shabby-looking boy with sandy brown hair. Alice and Mimi nodded and held tight to the sides of the boat as he joined them.

Once all the boats were loaded, Hagrid climbed into a boat by himself. His boat moved out in front of the rest, and Emma startled and clutched the side as the other boats began to move.

Mary and Lily hung on tight as well, eyes wide with amazement. "This whole magic thing is going to take some getting used to," Lily commented. Emma gave an understanding smile.

"You'll get used to it in no time," she assured them. Lily nodded and stared up at the night sky. The cloud cover had cleared slightly and a few stars could be seen. The red-head gazed up at them with a peaceful smile on her face.

Emma glanced at Severus and saw him staring at Lily with an odd look on his face. He looked…hungry, almost. Emma frowned slightly, but she was distracted when the boat behind her rocked alarmingly and raucous voices could be heard shouting and laughing. She twisted around to see.

Suddenly the boat nearly flipped over as a small figure tumbled out. There was a loud splash, and Lily snapped out of her reverie. Hagrid's lantern moved closer as he maneuvered his boat back toward the floundering boy. With one giant hand Hagrid hauled the boy out of the water and set him back in the boat. "All righ' there?" he asked, handing the boy his enormous fur coat.

The boy's friends echoed the sentiment. "You okay, Pete?"

In the boat ahead of them, Mimi laughed and Alice called out, "Is he all right?"

"I'm fine!" Pete shouted back from inside Hagrid's coat. Lily sighed and rolled her eyes.

"Should have known," she muttered.

"Should have known what?" Emma asked curiously.

"Ran into those boys on the train a couple times," said Lily disparagingly. "Troublemakers if I ever saw any."

"Ah," said Emma simply.

"They do make life interesting, those types," said Mary mischievously.

"Interesting and irritating," said Severus. Emma jumped. It was the first time she had heard him speak since the train ride. Mary shrugged in response, and then gasped. Emma twisted again to look behind her and saw why.

The boats were propelling themselves through a curtain of willow branches, and around the bend a huge black castle was coming into view. Yellow light flickered in the windows, and the gibbous moon peeking out from behind a cloud cast the scene into an eerie half-light. The shabby kid shifted as his boat drifted into a moonbeam.

The boats passed into a tunnel and came to a halt at what appeared to be an inlet of the lake underneath the castle. As she clambered out of the boat onto the dock, Emma took in her surroundings. The walls were of moss-covered stone, and ahead a stone staircase led up into the castle, she assumed.

**A/N: So, there you have it. Please drop me a line if you have anything to say! Especially if you have constructive criticism; I will certainly listen. Thank you! --Lily Lorelei**


	2. Chapter 2: Where We Belong

**A/N: Hello! I want to thank Snowflake-in-summer for reviewing and for putting this story on alert. Thank you also to Slytheringirlandproud for proofreading this; now please enjoy chapter two!**

**Chapter 2: Where We Belong**

"Allan, Emma."

As the tall, slim, blonde girl made her way up to the stool, Sirius Black was lost in thought. He was rather likely to be sorted into Slytherin, he thought gloomily. It really was too bad. He highly doubted that any of his friends from the train would be in Slytherin. James would probably be in Gryffindor like he hoped, and Matthew and Peter…well, he wasn't sure about them, but they didn't seem like Slytherins.

"Black, Sirius."

Sirius glanced up and saw Emma give a satisfied smile and settle herself at the Ravenclaw table. The stern-looking Professor McGonagall was looking at the first-years expectantly.

Sirius trudged to the stool and plopped the hat on his head. A little voice muttered in his ear. "Well, well, where shall we put you, Mr. Black?"

_I'm guessing Slytherin_, thought Sirius with a scowl.

"Now wait just a minute," said the hat. "I wouldn't be so sure. Slytherins usually possess more cunning and ambition. No, you belong in…" Sirius waited with bated breath.

"…GRYFFINDOR!"

Sirius slid off the stool in a daze. He couldn't believe his luck. Grinning, he gave the hat to the professor. He hurried down to the table at the far end of the Great Hall to thunderous applause.

Sirius caught the eye of his cousin Bellatrix from across the hall. Bella was a seventh-year Slytherin. She gave him a shrewd, calculating look and turned back to the Sorting as "Brady, Joshua" joined her house.

* * *

"Donohue, Matthew."

As the burly, brown-haired boy sat down, Lily recognized him vaguely as one of the "troublemakers" from the train, but she was too nervous to care much. The sorting hat had sung its song a few minutes earlier about the different houses, and Lily wondered where she would be. Maybe Ravenclaw? That sounded like a nice house, and Lily had always been the smart girl in her class at school. Severus wanted her to be in Slytherin, she knew. Of course Lily wanted to be with him, but something in her was reluctant to join that house…"_You might get a bit of grief from some of the Slytherins"…"Slytherins get a bad reputation for pure-blood mania"…_

Lily jumped as she heard her name called. Matthew Donohue was taking his seat with the Hufflepuffs. He waved at his friend at the Gryffindor table with a shrug and a half-smile.

The hat slid all the way past Lily's ears, blocking her vision. She barely had time to wonder why it was so large if it was meant to be worn by first-years before the hat shouted,

"GRYFFINDOR!"

Lily jumped again and nearly fell off the stool. She handed the hat to the emerald-robed witch, Professor McGonagall, she remembered, and walked quickly to the Gryffindor table as her new house cheered. Lily glanced back over her shoulder at Severus and saw him watching her with a pained expression. She smiled sadly and perched on the end of the bench where there was an open space. Lily looked around at the boy who had scooted down to make room for her and recognized him at once. With a scowl she crossed her arms and turned back to the Sorting.

* * *

"Lupin, Remus."

Remus Lupin shook his dirty-blonde hair out of his eyes as he sat down. He was a bit nervous about that hat. Would it know his secret? What if it didn't think he belonged at Hogwarts at all? He slid the hat on his head and waited.

"Remus Lupin, the werewolf," said a voice in his ear. Remus gulped. "Not to worry," continued the hat. "But you'll need a lot of bravery, for you and for your friends. It's a good thing you belong in GRYFFINDOR!"

Remus sighed in relief and sat down across from a pretty red-head with a glum expression. He gave her a friendly smile and she smiled back half-heartedly. Both of them turned their attention back to the front as "MacDonald, Mary" was called.

* * *

"Pettigrew, Peter."

Peter Pettigrew had never been the sort of boy who thought more highly of himself than he ought. As he passed a girl named Patil on her way to the Gryffindor table, he hoped, naturally, to be placed with Sirius or with Matthew, but he knew he wasn't unusually brave or loyal, or smart or cunning for that matter. He supposed the hat would have to be a bit arbitrary on this one. Peter was surprised, therefore, when the hat began to speak to him.

"Peter Pettigrew. You've a fair bit of courage here, boy. You're going to need it."

_Courage?_ _I haven't got any courage, _Peter answered. He decided to ignore the third voice which insisted that it required a lot of courage, or else foolishness, to be sitting on a stool in front of over two hundred people, and talking to a hat.

"Oh, yes you have," replied the hat. "Now see that you use it. Serve your house well, and you shall reap the consequences. You shall reap the consequences either way, actually, but it is up to you what those consequences shall be."

And on that rather ambiguous note, the hat called out, "GRYFFINDOR!" and Peter trotted to the table at the far end of the Hall. He felt very confused and at the same time obligated, in a way, as if the hat had faced him with a very important decision…as indeed it had.

* * *

"Potter, James."

James Potter swaggered up to the stool. His obvious self-assurance was envied by a few of the students still waiting to be sorted, although a certain red-head at the Gryffindor table narrowed her eyes with disdain. Oblivious, James seated himself and grinned at the hall as the stern witch placed the hat on his head.

"James Potter; from a long line of Gryffindors, if I do recall." Not at all surprised that this hat knew his family history, James smiled smugly. "Full of the Potter arrogance, just like your father, I see," the hat chuckled. James deflated slightly. "Oh, well, you'll grow out of it in time. Now, where shall I put you?"

_Gryffindor, of course_, answered James.

"And why is that, Mr. Potter?" inquired the hat.

_All my family have been there, you said so yourself. Besides, my new friend Sirius is in Gryffindor. So you _have_ to put me in Gryffindor,_ insisted James. _Please?_ he added as an afterthought.

"Very well, Mr. Potter." James could have sworn the hat was laughing at him. "As you wish.

"GRYFFINDOR!"

James smirked and sauntered down to the table at the far end, where his fellow Gryffindors were joyously celebrating his arrival. He squeezed onto the end of the bench next to the red-headed girl he recognized from the train, grinning at her. She, too, recognized him, and all but recoiled in disgust. In attempting to scoot away from him she brushed against Sirius on her other side. Finding herself surrounded, she scowled and crossed her arms and legs, blinking back tears of frustration. James raised his eyebrows and grinned at Sirius behind the girl's back.

"What's the matter, princess? We won't bite –much." She huffed and made no answer. A sandy-haired first-year across from them next to Peter was watching them with concern. James grinned and stuck out his hand.

"James Potter." The boy looked at him, startled.

"Remus Lupin," he said uncertainly, shaking James' hand. James grinned wider and opened his mouth to say more, but an older student shushed them and he realized that there were still a few students to be sorted, including—he smirked—dear old Snivellus.

* * *

"Smalls, Alice."

At the Gryffindor table, Mary MacDonald crossed all her fingers in her lap. She tried to cross her toes, too, but her shoes were too tight, so she settled for crossing her arms and legs. All her effort paid off when the hat shouted,

"GRYFFINDOR!"

Mary grinned at Alice and scooted over to make room as "Smith, Alexander" went to Hufflepuff.

"Snape, Severus," called Professor McGonagall. Mary hurriedly checked herself to make sure everything was uncrossed. Sure she felt sorry for Lily, being separated from her friend and all, but there was no way she wanted that creepy Snape kid sharing a house with her.

* * *

Severus hopped onto the stool and gazed longingly at Lily. The pampered-looking, bespectacled boy from the train smirked at him mockingly from beside her. Severus glared before the hat came down over his eyes and he was plunged into darkness.

"Severus Snape. You've quite a thirst to prove yourself, certainly."

_Lily does, too. Why'd you have to put her in Gryffindor? _Snape thought contemptuously.

"It's where she belongs," said the hat wisely. "And as you've guessed, Mr. Snape, you belong in…

"SLYTHERIN!"

Snape sighed and made his way away from Lily to the Slytherin table, where a prefect with white-blond hair indicated the seat beside him. Snape took one more backwards glance and sat.

* * *

The Sorting soon ended and the hat and stool were carried out of the room. At the staff table Albus Dumbledore stood up. The hall fell silent. "Welcome back, students new and old alike; welcome to another year at Hogwarts. I know you must all be starving after your long ride here, so I'll save all the announcements for after you have eaten and are feeling conveniently sleepy." There was an appreciative murmur of laughter. Without further ado, Dumbledore took his seat.

Gasps were heard from many of the first years as the golden dishes in front of them suddenly were piled high with every delicious food they had ever tasted, and a few they hadn't. Even James couldn't help but be a bit awed. He got over that quickly, however, and along with his neighbors he began helping himself to everything in reach and calling for the rest to be passed. After a few minutes of steady shoveling, he overheard one of his fellow first-years asking an older student about the classes and other goings-on at Hogwarts. Never one to pass up a chance to seem knowledgeable, James quickly jumped into the conversation, proudly retelling every bit of Hogwarts lore he had ever heard from his older cousins.

Sirius, too, had information to contribute, as did Alice, a round-faced, friendly-looking blonde. Next to her sat her friend Mary, who listened eagerly to everything said. Peter, too, listened with wide eyes, his jaw dropping at the more incredible statements (which was rather disgusting, since his mouth was usually full of potatoes).

Between Sirius and James, Lily was picking at her food. Hungry as she had to be after the trip, her plate was still half-full. She tried not to look like she cared about what James and Sirius were saying, but she couldn't help but listen, eager as she was to learn about this strange and amazing new world. James smirked when he saw her suppress a smile at a particularly amusing anecdote involving James' cousin Richard, the Hogwarts dungeons and a large amount of luminous paint.

"How about it, princess?" he asked teasingly. "Maybe you and I should go out and paint the dungeons red."

Lily glanced up sharply, stiffening when she saw him smirking at her. She narrowed her eyes. "I think not, thank you."

James raised his eyebrows in mock astonishment. "The princess speaks!" he exclaimed. Sirius snorted. Lily scowled and went back to her food.

After each of the first-years had eaten more than he or she had thought possible, the leftovers (what little there were) disappeared and Dumbledore stood once more. "Now that we are all fed and watered, I do have a few start-of-term announcements," he said. "Firstly, we have a new caretaker this year. Mr. Ogden has retired to spend more time with his wife and dogs, so please give a warm welcome to his successor Mr. Filch." There was a small smattering of applause. "In order to make his new job a bit easier, I would ask you all to review the list of forbidden items which can be found posted on the door to his office. Also we have a new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, Miss Vance." Dumbledore gestured toward an elegant-looking young woman who smiled and nodded. More applause.

"Finally," said Dumbledore as the hall grew silent once more. "You first-years have all been sorted into your four separate and equal houses, but I would like to remind you that they need not be completely separate. Which is to say that there is no reason why a Gryffindor and a Ravenclaw or a Hufflepuff or a Slytherin cannot be friends; you may be four houses, but we are one school. With that thought in mind, it's off to bed with you."

* * *

Alice stumbled sleepily up one more flight of stairs before the prefect ahead of her finally stopped in front of a large portrait of a very fat lady in a very pink dress. "Behind this portrait is the entrance to Gryffindor Tower," said the female Prefect. "The password will be changed every few weeks, so be sure you remember it. The current password is 'polyhedron.'" As she finished, the portrait swung forward, almost knocking into Peter and Remus, who jumped back quickly.

Alice followed her dorm mates through the common room and up yet more stairs before they finally came to a door marked "First Years." Mary pushed the door open to reveal a circular bedroom containing five elegant-looking four-posters decked out in red and gold. Alice looked around and located her trunk at the foot of one of the beds. She opened it and took out her pajamas.

"So, what do you think?" Mary asked the room at large. She was kneeling and rummaging through her trunk.

"About what?" Alice replied, yawning.

"Everything," said Mary. "The school, the food, our housemates."

"The school is big," answered Mimi, sitting cross-legged on her bed, taking out her pigtails. "The food is good. Sirius Black is hot."

"Agreed," said Mary. "But Potter is hotter. Hey, Potter, hotter....How did you get changed so fast? I can't find my pajama trousers."

Alice headed to the bathroom to brush her teeth. She rolled her eyes. "Girls, please, we're eleven. We've barely been here, I don't know, three hours and you're already concerned with boys? We've got seven years for that."

"Might as well get a head start," said Mimi jokingly. "What, are you my mother? She packed my suitcase," she said in response to Mary's comment. "My mum, I mean. She put the pajamas on top. I'm hopeless at packing."

There was silence for a moment. Alice came out of the bathroom just in time to hear Mary shout, "Found them!" and wave a pair of flowered pajama bottoms in the air. Mary stood and entered the bathroom. Alice sat down on her bed.

Mimi noticed Lily, in her nightgown, sitting on the windowsill and gazing out over the lake with a glum expression. "What's with you, Lily? You're as bad as Snivellus. Antisocial, the both of you."

Lily stiffened and turned to glare at Mimi. "His name is Severus," she said coldly.

Mimi gasped and clapped a hand over her mouth. "Sorry! I meant Severus, really. Severus. Severus Severus Severus." She put her hand to her head in concentration. "Seriously, though, come and talk to us. You too, um…Sorry, what's your name again?"

"I'm Asha Patil," answered the dark-haired girl from her bed.

"Asha, got it."

Alice nodded. "I know your brother Damin. He's in my sister Lizzie's class." Asha smiled and nodded.

"So," said Mimi. "What's up, Lily?"

Lily shrugged. "What's the matter?" Alice asked, concerned. "Are you upset because Severus is in Slytherin?"

Lily nodded.

"So?" Mimi said, as Mary returned and took a flying leap onto her bed, making the springs creak. "Emma is in Ravenclaw."

"But you and Severus seemed like you knew each other from before the train," Alice said.

Lily nodded again. "He lived nearby. We've been friends for a while."

Mary nodded in understanding. "But you heard what Dumbledore said. Students from different houses can still be friends." Lily perked up slightly.

Alice grimaced. "In theory that's true," she said. "But Gryffindor and Slytherin are a special case. They've been rivals for centuries." Asha nodded in agreement.

"But it's possible," Mary insisted, as Lily wilted. "You'll see each other at meals and breaks, and we'll probably have some classes together, right, Alice? Asha?"

"Oh, we will," Alice answered. "But you might end up wishing we didn't."

**A/N: Thanks for reading; I hope you liked it! Stay tuned for chapter three, and a happy Thanksgiving to all U.S. readers. –Lily Lorelei**


	3. Chapter 3: Settling In

**A/N: Hello! I hope all you U.S. readers had a wonderful Thanksgiving and are enjoying the long weekend. I'd like to thank Slytheringirlandproud for betaing for me as usual. I'd also like to thank l8rg8r123 for reviewing and for favoriting this story, and lostmoonsoldier for reviewing. Your encouragement made my day! Now please enjoy chapter 3.**

**Chapter 3: Settling In**

The first of September was a Wednesday. Lily and her classmates spent Thursday and Friday rushing from the dormitories to the Great Hall, from the Great Hall to classes, back to the Great Hall for lunch and dinner, and finally back to their dormitories. On the weekend they explored the castle and grounds and tried to stay on top of their homework.

On Monday morning, the sixth of September, Sirius Black was sitting at the breakfast table, stuffing several sausages into his mouth at once and generally minding his own business, when a menacing-looking eagle owl landed in front of him.

Sirius looked up and gave a muffled groan through his mouthful of food.

James Potter sitting next to him shot a wary but curious glance at the red envelope in the owl's beak. "A howler?"

Sirius swallowed valiantly. "Mum," he said with admirable bravado, though he paled slightly as he pried the letter from the owl's beak.

The letter began to smoke slightly. James leaned away from it. Many people in the near vicinity covered their ears, gesturing for perplexed friends and neighbors to do the same.

Nonetheless, the entire Great Hall soon heard what Walburga Black had to say to her oldest son.

* * *

Sirius was late. After the incident at breakfast, he had remembered that he had forgotten a book in the dormitory, and had insisted that his friends go to class without him. Now he rushed down flight after flight of stairs, without a watch to tell him whether it was necessary.

Sirius sped past a group of older students and skidded to a halt when he heard his own name called out. Sirius turned and swallowed nervously as he recognized the tallest girl.

Bellatrix Black beckoned her younger cousin. Sirius approached reluctantly, his grey eyes shifting between his seventh-year cousin, her sixth-year boyfriend Lucius Malfoy, and a formidable-looking Slytherin boy Sirius didn't know. Sixth-year Andromeda stood in the background, watching carefully with her dark, shrewd eyes.

"I heard her at breakfast," Bellatrix began. Sirius' jaw tightened. "'Is this how you repay your mother for eleven years of diligent education and flawless upbringing? I had believed you to have an auspicious future ahead of you. I haven't seen such uproar in the Black household since that…despicable Muggle-lover who…'" Bellatrix's memory failed her and she trailed off. "Do you now regret not begging the Sorting Hat to put you where you belong, despite your unworthiness?"

Sirius noticed vaguely that his cousin remembered more of his mother's lecture than he did. Sirius took a deep breath and looked his cousin in the eye. "I don't regret a thing," said Sirius defiantly. When Bellatrix simply stared at him, he continued recklessly. "In fact, I'm proud to be a Gryffindor."

Bellatrix's eyes widened. "You ungrateful little brat!" she said indignantly, drawing her wand. "I'll teach you a thing or two about pride—"

"Is there a problem?" Sirius twisted around to see the Head Girl, a Ravenclaw whose name he had forgotten, come up behind him and put her hand on his shoulder. "Black?"

"Not at all, Leland," said Bellatrix, with the amount of friendliness she usually reserved for particularly disgusting insects. _Muggleborn_, Sirius thought to himself, firmly squashing the small part of him that wanted to flinch away from her touch.

"Good," said Leland calmly. "Then I would ask you not to threaten the first-years. If you do it again I'll inform Professor Slughorn. You've made this one late already," she added.

Bellatrix glared and spun on her heel. Her companions hurriedly made way for her and followed her down the hall and out of sight. Sirius ducked away from Leland and darted off with a quick "thanks" thrown over his shoulder.

* * *

Lily strolled into the Great Hall with her roommates for breakfast Tuesday morning. Just as the girls were helping themselves to scrambled eggs and toast, the post owls flew in. Lily jumped as a tawny owl landed in front of her. She gently pried a letter from his beak. The owl fluffed his feathers importantly (he was a school owl) and flew off.

Mary looked at the letter curiously. "From your parents?" she asked.

"Yes," answered Lily, opening the letter. "I'm surprised they wrote back so quickly. I only sent the letter Saturday afternoon."

Lily ate her breakfast absently while scanning the letter. When she got to the end she set it down with a sigh.

"What's wrong?" Alice asked, setting down her fork.

"Nothing, it's…it's nothing."

"Come on," Mary pressed. Asha too looked over, her big brown eyes filled with concern.

Lily hesitated, and then said, "Do you have any siblings?"

Mary shook her head. "No."

"I do," said Alice. "Two brothers and a sister, all older than me. My sister is a fourth-year, and my brothers have graduated."

"I have a younger brother," said Mimi.

"Will he go to Hogwarts?" asked Alice.

"I dunno…my whole family is Muggles."

"But here you are," Lily pointed out.

"Yeah," said Mimi uncertainly. "Huh. I hadn't thought about that."

"What will happen if he doesn't get the letter?" asked Lily. "Do you think he'll be mad? Jealous of you?"

Mimi frowned. "I sure hope not."

"What are you on about, Lily?" asked Mary.

Lily sighed. "My parents sent a note from my sister Petunia. She's a Muggle."

"What does it say?"

"It just says hi, how are you, I'm fine, that sort of thing."

"So what's the problem?" asked Mimi.

"The problem is, Petunia wouldn't…she's not…" Lily struggled for words. "She hates me now. She didn't write this. Or maybe my parents made her write it, I don't know. We used to be best friends, before Sev—I mean, um…" she trailed off miserably.

"So she doesn't like Snape?" said Mary.

"You think she's jealous that you're a witch?" Alice asked at the same time.

"I'm not sure," answered Lily. "That's what Sev thought, but she kept saying she didn't want to be a witch. She said she wouldn't go to Hogwarts if you paid her. She said—she said I was a freak."

"Sour grapes," said Mimi.

Alice blinked. "What? Grapes?"

"It means she just wants Lily to think she's not jealous, when she really is," Mary explained.

Lily shrugged and glanced at her watch. "We had better head for Potions."

* * *

Remus Lupin stared into space. His three roommates sat near him, engaged in animated conversation. Remus was only half listening, as his mind was otherwise occupied with a conversation he had had earlier that day.

"The moon rises early, around 8:30 tonight," Professor McGonagall had said when she had pulled him aside after breakfast that morning. "Go to the hospital wing at 7:45; Madam Pomfrey and I will show you the passageway."

Remus glanced at his watch for the tenth time in so many minutes. He sat on the edge of his chair, jiggling his leg nervously. He heard Sirius saying his name; he sounded very far away. Remus nodded and smiled vaguely.

"You okay, mate?" asked James, poking Remus in the arm. Remus blinked. He looked at his watch again.

"No, um, actually I—I've got a stomachache. Think I'd better go to the Hospital wing." Remus jumped up and hurried to the portrait door. He wondered if he only imagined every gaze in the room boring into his back.

Although it was well before curfew, Remus hurried down the stairs and along the corridor to the Hospital Wing, anxiously peering over his shoulder every so often. By the time he reached the Hospital Wing he was nearly trembling with apprehension. Professor McGonagall met him at the door.

"Ah, right on time, Mr. Lupin," she said briskly. She opened the door and called, "Poppy? We're ready."

The brusque but kindly Madam Pomfrey bustled out. "Are you all right, Mr. Lupin?" she asked gently. Remus swallowed hard and nodded.

A faint trace of daylight still lit the grounds, although the sun had sunk below the mountains on the western horizon. The two women led Remus past the Black Lake toward a strong young willow tree. The tree creaked menacingly as they approached, and its branches swung slightly, though the air was still. When they were within ten feet of the tree, it began thrashing about, branches lashing out to try and whip its trespassers off their feet. Madam Pomfrey took hold of a long branch conveniently hidden behind a bush. She crept forward cautiously and poked a large knot on the tree trunk. The tree froze, and Professor McGonagall indicated a gap between two of its roots.

"The passage is down there; you'll find an abandoned house at the other end. Are you ready?"

Remus shivered in the warm, almost stifling air of the September evening. He took a deep breath to steady himself and stepped forward. He reached the passageway, and Madam Pomfrey backed away as the tree began groaning sluggishly. Remus slipped into the darkness, and was alone.

* * *

Remus woke to a soft, warm hand on his shoulder and a woman's voice calling his name. "Mum?" he murmured sleepily.

A pause. "No, dear," said a gentle voice his foggy brain now realized was not his mother's. "It's Madam Pomfrey. You fell asleep. You need to get back to the castle before your roommates wake up."

Remus shook his head to clear it and stood stiffly. "Oh. Okay." Blinking in the pale, cloudy light of morning, he realized that he had passed out against the tree trunk next to the passageway. As if the floodgates had opened, the memories of the night before washed back over him.

He had come to himself in the pitch darkness of the shack, crying out loud. He didn't know how long he had sat on the floor as his sobs faded into silent tears streaming through his splayed fingers. The salt stung where it ran into the many cuts and scratches he had inflicted upon himself.

His crying had brought on a wave of homesickness, the first since his arrival at Hogwarts. His mother had always cried with him on nights like this. Even as he grew older, and tried not to let his tears fall, she still cried. His father never came home those nights, and the local bartender knew to expect him once a month when the moon was full, although he never knew why. But Remus' mother stayed, always. There was a little hallway in their house that led to the basement where Remus had made his transformations. The basement was magically secured, and the house was always soundproofed so as not to alert the neighbors. Sometimes his mother shut herself in her bedroom on those nights, but Remus knew that many times she sat at the top of the stairs in front of the locked door, listening. As soon as his tortured howls and whines dwindled into sobs and whimpers, she was there, crying with him. Sometimes he wondered whom she cried for most: Remus, or herself.

* * *

On a Saturday afternoon in the middle of September, Lily Evans finished her last assignment with a sigh of relief. "That's that done, then," she said to herself, stowing ink, quill and parchment in her bag. She glanced out of the window at a bright blue sky. Lily fetched her book from a nearby table and settled into a chair by the window. Looking out she could see sunlight sparkling on the lake. She scanned the lawn for Severus, but didn't see him. She caught sight of some other boys on the shore, however, whom she recognized. James and Sirius had grabbed hold of a large tree branch that had fallen in the previous night's storm, and Peter, Remus and Frank Longbottom with a few of his fellow second-years looked on as the two black-haired boys carefully trailed the end of the branch in the water. Lily almost laughed aloud along with the other boys when a giant tentacle grabbed hold of the branch and yanked, pulling James and Sirius headfirst into the water.

"Are you done yet, Lily?" Lily turned around as three of her roommates climbed through the portrait hole. "It's so gorgeous out," said Mary. "Won't you come outside with us?"

Lily smiled. "I've just finished. All right, but don't the rest of you still have work to do?"

"That's what tomorrow's for," said Mimi with a grin. "It's just too pretty out to work. We've been stuck inside all week with the rain."

Lily tried to look reproachful, but was quickly won over as Mimi clasped her hands, cocked her head and blinked her bright blue eyes. "Please?"

"Okay, fine," Lily said, laughing. "But tomorrow night when you're up at all hours working, don't come complaining to me."

"Yes, ma'am!" Mimi sprang into a salute as Mary clapped her hands gleefully and Alice smiled and shook her head at their antics.

"Where's Asha?" Lily asked as Mimi led the way back out of the portrait hall, down the stairs and out to the lakeshore.

"With her brother," said Mary. "She said she'd catch up with us later." The Gryffindor first-year girls found their male counterparts sprawled under a tree by the lake, not far from where Lily had seen them last. Frank and his friends had disappeared.

"Hi, boys!" called Mary, waving happily.

James and Sirius gave half-hearted greetings from where they lay on the ground. Remus had been leaning against the tree, but he sat up and waved as the girls approached. He poked Peter, who was absorbed in a Muggle comic book. "Oh, hi," Peter said absent-mindedly.

"You're wet," Mimi commented to James and Sirius, standing over them with her hands on her hips.

"Yeah…" Sirius grinned. "We had a little…"

"…Accident," James finished.

"Ew!" Mimi jumped back. "Don't you think you're a bit old for that?"

Sirius glared at her. "With _water_, stupid!"

"And the giant squid," said Remus helpfully.

"They were trying to poke it with a stick and it pulled them in," Lily added without thinking.

"What do you know about it?" asked James, suddenly embarrassed. Mimi was doubled over in laughter, and seeing James' face, Mary and Alice were trying hard not to join her.

"Oh, um, nothing," said Lily hurriedly. "I just…it just seemed like the sort of stupid thing you would try. And I was right, wasn't I?" She turned up her nose haughtily.

James smirked. "You were watching."

"Wasn't," Lily replied unconvincingly.

James grinned knowingly. "Sure you weren't, princess."

Lily narrowed her eyes. "That's Miss Evans to you." An awkward silence ensued.

Mary fidgeted. "Um, so…"

Remus saw Mary's discomfort and decided to help out. "Did you know that some goats urinate on their own heads to make themselves more attractive to the females?"

"_What?_" Lily demanded. Mimi stared. Alice looked confused. Mary tried to look grateful but couldn't help but be a bit disgusted…

Meanwhile, the boys were cracking up. "Seriously?" said Peter. "That's—"

"That's disgusting!" Lily finished, shaking her head incredulously.

"How could any female find that attractive in the slightest?" Alice wondered.

"Oh, you'd be surprised the number of things females find attractive," said a boy's voice.

Alice turned around. "Oh, hi, Asha. Hi, Damin."

A pretty brunette fourth-year came up behind Damin. "Hey, cutie, I've been looking for you. What've you been up to?"

Damin grinned. "Hi, Charlotte. Just hangin' with my little sis."

Charlotte smiled. "Checking up on her, huh? That's just like you. Hey there, firsties. I'm surprised at you. When I was your age I was still in the boys-are-gross stage."

"You're telling me," Lily remarked, shooting Remus a look. He grinned back a little sheepishly.

Charlotte wrapped her arms around Damin and kissed him on the cheek. He blushed as James and his friends complained loudly.

"Gross!" said Sirius.

"Gross beyond gross," James agreed.

Charlotte laughed. "Let's go find someplace a little more private, Damin."

Damin grinned. "See you around, Asha." Asha smiled bemusedly and waved.

Lily caught sight of a familiar scrawny figure. "I'll see you later, okay?" she told her friends.

Mary followed her gaze and nodded. "Sure. See you, Lily."

* * *

"Hi, Sev!"

Severus glanced up from the ground. His whole face lit up when he saw her. "Hi, Lily." Lily ran along the lakeshore and skidded to a halt beside him.

Lily grinned at him. "Oh my gosh, Sev, you won't believe what happened today!" She launched into a story about Mary MacDonald, Charms class and a small explosion. Severus listened with more animation than he'd shown all day in classes. His bright black eyes watched her every gesture. He laughed so loudly that a passing Slytherin prefect stopped and stared. Lily grabbed his hand and pulled him to a tree, under which she sat. He let her pull him down next to her, feeling more at home than he had all week.

**A/N: Please read and review! The next chapter is written, but I'm hoping to finish chapter 5 by next weekend so that I won't fall behind later. Thank you and have a great week!**


	4. Chapter 4: The Downside of Routine

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* * *

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A/N: Sorry about the wait, everyone! I hope to finish the next chapter soon. Thank you l8rg8r123 for your review, and Merry Christmas to everyone!

**Chapter 4: The Downside of Routine**

The weather grew steadily colder as September blurred into October and through to November. Inside the castle, student life had settled into a predictable schedule.

With predictability came boredom for many of the energetic young people at Hogwarts, including a certain rowdy bunch of first-years in Gryffindor Tower.

A frigid wind from the north was battering the castle, but the fires flickered warmly inside on that dark, stormy evening in November. James Potter and his friends were sprawled on a lush rug before the hearth, indignant at having been booted unceremoniously from their fire-side armchairs by the older boys on a dubious claim of "seniority privileges."

Sirius flopped onto his back and tossed a balled-up piece of parchment into the air. "Are you done?" Remus asked in surprise, glancing up from his work.

"No," Sirius admitted. "My brain is dead."

"Your brain never lived," Peter muttered. Sirius chucked the ball of parchment at him. Peter threw it back, but missed and hit Remus in the head. Remus rolled his eyes and went back to his work. Sirius picked up the parchment and threw it at James.

"Ow!" James yelped indignantly.

"'Ow'?" Sirius laughed derisively. "Wimp."

James grabbed the parchment and pulled back his hand to pelt it, but paused as a mischievous grin spread across his face. He glanced behind him where five small girls were bent over their work at a table nearby. James took aim, lobbed his weapon and ducked down as the parchment bounced off a ginger head of hair with a quiet _piff_.

Sirius snickered and snuck a glance at the girls. Lily glanced up and turned around. She saw the ball sitting innocently on the stone floor and shot a suspicious glance at the boys, who tried to look as innocuous and failed miserably. Lily narrowed her eyes and turned back to her work.

James quickly assembled another makeshift missile and once again hit his target spot on. Lily stiffened but did not turn.

James set his jaw in determination. She was ignoring him. James Potter was not used to being ignored. James shot a sideways glance at Sirius, who grinned and slid a stockpile of scratch parchment in between them.

A few seconds later, a veritable hailstorm of parchment jolted Lily from her thoughts. Her friends glanced up in surprise and hid their smiles. Lily clenched her fists and stood. Mary and Mimi craned their necks to get a better view as Lily stomped towards the boys.

"Hey there, Evans," said James casually. "Can we help you?"

"If you could _please_ refrain from throwing parchment; _some_ of us are trying to work," Lily said sharply.

Sirius stifled a snicker, and Lily shot him a look. "As you wish, princess," said James with an innocent smile.

Lily scowled. "The name is Miss Evans."

"Whatever you say, princess." Peter snorted as Lily all but stomped her foot in frustration and stalked back to her seat. Her friends smiled at her with varying levels of sympathy as she huffed and bent over her work again.

A third-year looked on with amusement as James attempted to levitate an inkwell, but only succeeded in dumping it all over the rug. After letting James endeavor to wheedle a cleaning charm out of Remus for a good five minutes, the older boy took pity on James and cleaned up the mess.

"It's swish and flick, not flick and swish," he muttered in James' ear. "But you didn't hear it from me."

James grinned and tried again. Carefully he manipulated the inkwell into position, and ever so cautiously tipped it until just one drop splashed onto Lily's hand.

"Is something—" Lily broke off with a shriek as she glanced up and spotted the inkwell hovering over her head. James laughed out loud, and then gasped as he lost control and the inkwell poured its entire contents onto Lily's face.

The third-year grimaced and decided to take his leave. James glanced around for help and found his three friends looking on in motionless horror as Lily sprinted up the stairs to her dormitory, screaming bloody murder.

The other girls split up, Alice and Mary following Lily upstairs while Mimi rounded on the boys and Asha watched, her brown eyes wide. "What was that?" Mimi demanded angrily.

"It was an accident!" James exclaimed. "I only meant to drip it on her."

"Stupid!" Mimi replied. "Why didn't you stop him?" she inquired of Remus.

"Why me?" said Remus defensively.

"Because you're the only one with half a brain!"

"Oh, that's harsh, Stewart. That one cut me right here," said Sirius, putting a hand over his heart. Mimi looked like she wanted to punch him, until Asha stepped forward.

"Leave it, Mimi, let's go," she said quietly, taking her friend by the arm. Mimi grumbled incoherently but went along. "You really ought to be more careful," said Asha gently before taking her leave. Peter winced. Sirius exchanged glances with James, who shrugged.

"Well, that's one way to add some excitement to the evening," said Remus, finishing his essay with a flourish. "I don't know about you, but I'm going to bed before any of them come back down."

"Good idea," said Sirius, jumping up. James and Peter soon followed suit, and peace reigned in the Gryffindor Common Room once more…at least for a few hours.

* * *

At breakfast the next morning, James was in the middle of retelling a particularly amusing anecdote about the previous afternoon's Herbology lesson when Peter interjected in a hushed voice, "Don't look now, but here come the girls."

James tried to look indifferent, but after a moment he snuck a look behind him. He let out a breath he hadn't known he was holding when he saw that Lily's hair was its normal red, and her face showed no signs of ink stains.

Alice caught James' eye and he quickly turned back to his friends. "So, anyway, this was no ordinary daffodil, because…"

"I see that they aren't at all sorry," Lily commented, jerking her head at the boys as she reached for the porridge spoon.

Alice shrugged. "Boys will be boys." Lily snorted but didn't reply.

* * *

The first snow came in late November. Mary MacDonald awoke in the early morning to a calm, peaceful silence. Upon opening the curtains she saw that the grounds were covered in white. The snow reflected the pale winter sunlight, creating stark contrast where the trees cast long, black shadows on the ground. Mary gave a happy sigh and turned away from the window. Mary slept in the farthest bed from the door, and she usually was the first to wake up.

Mary checked her watch. Turning to the nearest bed, she took a deep breath and yanked the curtains open to reveal a mess of red hair poking out from beneath the covers. "Lily! Get up." Lily groaned and pulled the covers over her head. Mary sighed. "I'll come back to you."

Mary moved along to the next bed to find the curtains already opened and a sleepy-eyed Alice blinking at her. "'Morning, Mary," said Alice vaguely before stumbling to the bathroom.

"'Morning, Alice," said Mary. In the next bed she found Mimi sprawled nearly sideways on her back with her mouth hanging open. "Aren't you a lovely picture?" Mary commented, poking Mimi in the stomach. Mimi yelped and rolled onto the floor.

"I'm up, I'm up!" Mimi said, standing unsteadily.

"What?" mumbled Asha from her bed. "No, I don't want it…no…"

"Time to wake up, Asha," said Mimi.

"What?" Asha repeated more lucidly.

"You were talking in your sleep again."

"Oh…"

"Okay, Lily, your turn again," said Mary. She pulled back the blankets from Lily's face. Lily whimpered and grabbed for them, curling tightly into a ball. Mary sighed. "Give me a hand," she told Mimi. Mimi came over and grabbed one of Lily's feet, while Mary took the other. "And…pull!"

Lily squealed and hung onto the bedposts for dear life as Mimi and Mary dug in their heels. Finally Asha wandered over and pried Lily's hands off the posts. Lily dropped halfway onto her bed with a creaking of springs. "You awake yet?" asked Mimi. Lily mumbled something incoherent, grabbed her dressing gown and went to wait her turn for the bathroom.

Mimi happened to glance out of the window. She squealed loudly. "Snow!"

"Yup!" said Mary happily. "I told you it was going to snow last night."

The other girls crowded around. "Oh, it's so pretty!" Asha murmured. Even Lily smiled and nodded.

"Snow?" asked Alice, coming out of the bathroom. "How deep is it?"

"Dunno," said Mimi. She seized the window latch and opened the window, which creaked painfully. The other girls jumped back.

"Hey, Mimi, it's cold," Mary complained.

Mimi stuck her head out and peered at the ground. "Doesn't look that deep."

Alice reached out and broke an icicle off of the overhang above them. "Look out below!" she shouted, making sure the coast was clear before dropping the icicle. It landed in the snow below with a thunk.

"Just a few centimeters," said Alice, shutting the window and rubbing her hands together to warm them. "The top's still sticking out."

Mary shrugged. "Better than nothing. C'mon, we'll be late for breakfast."

* * *

"Oh, good, we've got Herbology first," Lily said after breakfast. "That means we get to go outside."

The girls paused outside the oak front doors of the castle, gazing out over the spotless lawn. Mary cautiously poked a toe into the snow. "You're right; it's not that deep," she said.

"Then we've got to savor it," said Lily. "Walk in my footprints." She set off toward the greenhouses, putting one foot in front of the other in a perfectly straight line.

"Good idea," said Mary, following suit.

"YAAAAHHHH!" The girls spun around to see a group of boys, which seemed to be comprised of the first-year Gryffindors and Ravenclaws who had Herbology together, sprinting out onto the lawn and nearly bowling over the girls in the process. An impromptu snowball fight soon began as the boys raced back and forth over the grass while slowly making progress toward their destination, the greenhouses.

Lily sighed as the precious snow turned quickly to ice and mud under her classmates' feet. The girls glanced at one another. Mimi shrugged. "If you can't beat 'em—"

She broke off with a yelp as a snowball hit her in the head. Mimi turned to see Asha pointing a finger at Mary, who raised her eyebrows in a failed attempt to look innocent. Mimi grinned wickedly. "Join 'em!" she finished, scooping up a handful of snow and chasing Mary, who ran, screaming and laughing. Lily giggled and raced after her friends.

* * *

Rain. A warm spell came in the last days of November, and what was left of the snow quickly vanished under buckets upon buckets of rain. December the first saw James Potter sitting in a grey and gloomy classroom, staring out of the window at a grey and gloomy world.

"Mr. Potter?"

James started and glanced around. "What?"

"I asked if you could please demonstrate the correct way to transfigure a wooden button into brass, Mr. Potter."

"Oh, right…" James pointed his wand at his button and said the spell. His button grew more golden in color, but was still decidedly wooden. Professor McGonagall raised one eyebrow.

"Perhaps if you were to spend more time in the classroom and less time on Mars, Mr. Potter," she remarked drily. Sirius snickered and the professor glared at him.

A few minutes later, class was dismissed for the afternoon and the first-years, having nothing better to do, headed for the Common Room. In Gryffindor Tower, Mary put her elbows on the window sill and sighed.

"This is so _boring_!"

"Want to play Exploding Snap, Mary?" Lily asked, holding up the cards.

"Again?" Mary complained. "Well, all right then. At least explosions make things a bit more interesting." Mary brightened suddenly as a thought struck her. "Hey," she called to the boys, lounging on the floor by the fire. "You want to play Exploding Snap with us?"

"Mary!" Lily whispered in annoyance. The boys glanced at each other and shrugged.

"Sure," said Sirius, getting up. Lily set her jaw and stepped on Mary's foot. Mary grinned happily.

"We'll play, too," said Mimi, coming over with Alice and Asha.

A few raucous games of cards occupied the first-years until supper. Mary's mood grew melancholy once more as she stared up at the ceiling of the Great Hall at a steel-grey expanse of cloud. "It's December," she remarked, poking at her potatoes. "What if it keeps raining? What if it rains like this on Christmas?"

"It won't," said Alice confidently. "It'll stop soon."

"I'm sure we'll have snow again in time for Christmas," Lily agreed.

"Of course," said Damin, overhearing from down the table. "Cheer up, firsties. There's always a white Christmas at Hogwarts."

"Really?" Mary asked, perking up a bit.

"Well, there was that time—ouch! I mean, of course, always." The other boy glared at Damin, who smiled innocently.

"Always," Damin assured them. He leaned in confidentially. "It's magic."

Mary grinned in spite of herself.

* * *

Despite Damin's promise, the rain continued into the next day, a Saturday. By the time midmorning rolled around, the first-years had completely exhausted their indoor methods of entertainment. "Dash it all, I want to go outside," said Mary. "Who's with me?"

"Mary, you're absolutely mental," said Lily, looking out at the downpour. "You'll catch your death of cold."

"Rubbish," said Mary firmly, grabbing her cloak. "Mimi? Alice? Asha?"

"I'm game," said Mimi, eager for an adventure.

Alice shook her head. "I prefer to stay dry, thanks."

"Come on, Asha," Mimi wheedled. "It'll be fun."

Asha hesitated. "Oh, all right then," she said, rising. "But I'm wearing gloves and such."

"Yeah, that's probably a good idea," Mimi admitted, hurrying upstairs.

A few minutes later the three girls were headed for the portrait hole, when an older girl stopped them. "Where are you off to?"

"We want to go outside," said Mary honestly.

The girl gave them an incredulous look. "All right then," she said dubiously. "Suit yourself."

"You're mental," said Sirius from nearby. Mary stuck her tongue out at him. "I'm coming too," he said, jumping up.

James quickly followed. He glanced back at Peter, who was absorbed in a comic book (this one of the wizarding variety that Frank had lent him), and Remus, who took one glance out the window and shook his head at them.

"Well, hurry up then," said Mary impatiently. "You'll want a cloak."

"Nah, we're good," said Sirius. James nodded in agreement. The girls shrugged at one another. "What are we waiting for?"

On the threshold of the great oaken doors of the castle, the five first-years stared out at the grounds through curtains of water. "You first," Mary said to Sirius.

"It was your idea," Sirius retorted.

"Oh, somebody go already," said Mimi from behind them.

"You go then, Stewart," said James.

"All right, but you're coming with me," said Mimi. "On three. One…two…three!" She sprinted off through the rain, skidding to a halt in the mud a few meters away when she realized she was alone in her escapade.

"Come on, then," she shouted over the wind. "It's not that bad. Come on."

James and Sirius glanced at one another and took off, running and yelling like barbarians. They blew past Mimi where she stood waiting on the other girls. Asha and Mimi steeled themselves and followed, screaming. Mimi laughed. "Come on, let's catch them up."

A wet game of tag soon began, accented by much skidding into mud puddles. James collided with Mary, sending them both sprawling. Sirius doubled over in laughter. Mary pulled off her soaked glove and threw it at him. He seized a handful of mud and missed her by a hair. A mud fight ensued.

Their game was halted by the approach of the Ravenclaw Quidditch team, coming back from practice. "What on earth…?" said the Ravenclaw captain. "Are you out here voluntarily?"

"Oh, uh…yeah," said Mary, suddenly embarrassed. "We should probably go in soon."

"Try and avoid the new caretaker when you do," the older boy warned them. "I've heard he gets awfully upset when someone muddies up his floors."

"Oh, um, okay." Mary nodded. "We'll be careful." He nodded and led his team back to the castle as they cast curious glances at the first-years.

* * *

"Shh!" Mary glared at James and Sirius as they noisily reentered the Entrance Hall.

"What? It's the middle of the afternoon."

"I don't want Filch to—"

"Don't want Filch to what now, firsties?" Mary sighed as the caretaker appeared out of a nearby corridor. Argus Filch was not yet the old and bitter man he would become. He was actually rather young, in his late thirties at most, but it was obvious that he did not enjoy being around young people. Even at that moment his cantankerous face was twisted into a sneer.

"Oh, um, hello Mr. Filch," Mary stammered. "We just, um, we…"

"We didn't want to trouble you," said Asha softly, stepping out in front of her friend. "But I'm afraid we've tracked in a small bit of mud."

"Asha," Mimi muttered, giving her a warning look.

"We're very sorry to have messed up your beautiful floors," said Asha sincerely, looking up at Filch, her large brown eyes filled with regret. Filch blinked at her. There was a long pause.

"Go on then, get out of here before I call your Head of House," he said gruffly. The first-years hurried away.

"You're good," said Sirius, casting an admiring glance at Asha. "Get into much trouble at home?"

"Oh, I'm so careless," Asha admitted. "I always forget things. I have a lot of practice with apologizing."

"Well, it comes in handy," said Mimi. "And now I'm starving. Dinner, anyone?"

**A/N: Enh. Well, that's that. I'll keep working on Chapter 5, so keep an eye out! Any and all feedback is greatly appreciated. Thank you!**


	5. Chapter 5: Christmas Letters

**A/N: Hello, everyone! I hope you all had a very merry Christmas and a happy New Year's. I want to thank l8rg8r for such an encouraging review. Without further ado, I give you:**

**Chapter 5: Christmas Letters**

"Dear Sirius,

"Are you coming home for Christmas? I know it's not the friendliest place for you…You should have seen Mum's face when she got Cousin Bella's letter. I've never seen her so angry. It was actually a little scary. Father didn't say much, just let her scream all she wanted. She says I had better not end up like you. She says But you don't want to hear about that.

"I bet you're having tons of fun at Hogwarts. I wish I could go. It's awful boring here without you. I miss you. If you could come home, that'd be good. I haven't heard from you for a while now. Did you forget about me? Oh well, you've probably been pretty busy with school and stuff. Are the Gryffindor kids nice? Mum says You've probably made lots of friends.

"Write back soon so I know if you're coming.

"Love Your brother,

"Reg."

* * *

"Dear Mum, Dad and Tuney, and Petunia, and my sister, and Tuney,

"I'm so glad it's almost the holidays! I've missed you so much, especially you, Tuney. Will we have time to go shopping when I get home? I want to buy Christmas presents for all my friends.

"Things around here just keep getting busier. The teachers want to get a lot done before holiday, I suppose. There was a lot of rain earlier, but it got colder and now there's plenty of snow on the ground. Think we'll have a white Christmas at home, too? Is Nana coming this year?

"I'm learning a lot here, as usual. Just the other day in Potions, we learned how to make a Forgetfulness Potion. I wish I could show you everything when I get home, but Lizzie, Alice's big sister, says we're not allowed to use magic at home. It's too bad, really.

"Sev says he might not go home for Christmas. I hope he does, though. I don't get much chance to play with him here. Everyone looks at us funny. There's always so much going on.

"Well, I had better go. See you soon!

"Love from, Lily."

* * *

Severus Snape opened his eyes in the grey light of dawn on Christmas morning. Christmas carried little more excitement for Severus than any other day, but after a few minutes, he reached the conclusion that he would not be able to fall back asleep, and so decided to get up.

Shuffling quietly along the bare wooden floors of the corridor so as not to wake his parents, Severus crept to the living room and climbed onto a threadbare armchair that smelled faintly of whiskey. Opening a window behind the chair, he leant out into the crisp morning air, his breath making frosty clouds that reminded him of dragon smoke.

As he watched, the clouds overhead parted slightly to make way for a solitary ray of sunlight that filtered through the fog. It looked like a pathway for an angel, Severus thought, smiling to himself.

"Who's letting in that draft?" Severus jumped as his father's callous voice came booming down the stairs. Severus slammed the window shut and slid down off of the chair. He tried to sneak into the kitchen but found himself seized by the arm. "What do you think you're sneaking about, boy? Get back to your bed before I give you something to sneak about."

Severus hurried up the stairs to his bedroom as his father opened the refrigerator and shuffled things around looking for a beer. Sitting cross-legged on his bed, Severus sighed. "Merry Christmas, Sev," he whispered.

* * *

Lily sat cross-legged on the rug in the sitting room, gazing up at the colored lights on the Christmas tree, reveling in the peace and quiet of the early December morning. Up early for once, it was a trial of Lily's patience to wait for the rest of the family to get up, but Lily was happy just to look at the tree, the undisturbed presents piled beneath it.

A few clumsily-wrapped packages made Lily smile. Her mother had intercepted all Lily's owls at the window since she had arrived home, confiscating packages to be saved for Christmas morning. Lily looked forward especially to seeing what magical trinkets she would receive from Asha and Alice, who had promised her "real wizarding Christmas gifts."

A creak from the staircase made Lily glance up. 13-year-old Petunia froze when she caught sight of her younger sister, then wordlessly came and curled up on the sofa behind her, turning her gaze also to the tree. Blue eyes and green were reflected in a silver mirror ornament inscribed with the words, "_Peace on Earth, good will toward men._" The girls sat in silence until the song of the sparrows in the hedge outside woke Mr. and Mrs. Evans, and Christmas morn could begin in earnest.

Lily was thrilled with all her presents, but one gift particularly enraptured both Lily and her parents. "_I know how much you love history, and exploring the castle. I thought you might like your own copy of this. Love from Alice," _Lily read, and eagerly tore the wrapping off of a glossy new book, _Hogwarts, a History._ Lily could barely be distracted from her new engagement long enough to unwrap a box of chocolates from Mimi, a fascinating perpetual snowglobe from Asha, a necklace from Mary and various trinkets from extended family. Lily's mother was startled by the moving photographs, and spent the next half hour or so poring over the book with her daughter.

Petunia sulked in a corner following this occurrence. Her father noticed and tried to distract her with breakfast, but then was distracted himself by his wife's exclamation over a Quidditch scene. A detailed description of Quidditch was called for, to which calling Lily readily obliged.

Petunia opened her own book and appeared not to take further heed of the conversation. Later that night, however, when Lily tiptoed downstairs in the dark for a glass of milk, she saw a slender figure silhouetted in the Christmas lights, bending over the pages in wondrous enthrallment.

* * *

"Dear Lily,

"I hope you had a happy Christmas. Do you like my present? Thanks so much for the charm bracelet. I especially like the little diamond heart. I know it's not a real diamond, but it looks like one. Who knows, maybe no one can tell the difference?

"It's really nice that your parents are so excited about magic. I tried to tell my dad about _Wingardium Leviosa_, and he just wanted to know why on earth I would want to levitate something when I could just pick it up. My mum didn't seem to like it much either. She got this odd look on her face and asked if I had met any cute boys. I told her I had, of course, and we talked about that for a while. I guess I just wish they wanted to hear about magic as much as I want to tell them. So it's fine, I guess.

"I miss you and the other girls so much! And the boys, of course. I can't wait to see you again.

"With love,

"Mary."

* * *

"Hey there, mate,

"How's things at your place? Has your mum finished screaming at you yet? Things are pretty boring around here. We had the cousins 'round for Christmas dinner, but now it's just me, Mum and Dad again. My parents are great and all, but…you know. Here's an idea: next time I should have you over here for Christmas. How 'bout it, Sirius?

"Anyway, the beans were great, thanks. I tricked my cousin Greg into eating a grass-flavored one. You should've seen his face! My parents gave me a wicked broom. They say it'll come in handy next year when I can try out for the house team. It'd be fun to be a Seeker, but I think I'll try out for Chaser. Are you going to try out? That would be cool if we were on the team together. Did you get the present I sent?

"Only a week 'til we go back. My parents are having some big party for New Years with a bunch of their friends…I'm going to be so bored.

"See you in a week, if I don't die of boredom first,

"James."

* * *

Peter Pettigrew sighed as he stared out of the window at the wind and sleet. His parents both worked, leaving the house occupied by only Peter and Bruno, the family's imaginatively named St. Bernard. Bruno was asleep at the moment, and snoring rather gratingly. Peter briefly considered waking the dog just for company, but thought better of it. A grumpy St. Bernard twice Peter's size would hardly make a proper playmate.

Peter glanced at the clock: four thirty. He had forty-five minutes more to endure, more or less, before his parents got in on the Underground. He just hoped one of them would get here before—

"Hey, anybody home?"

Peter groaned inwardly. "Just me, Uncle Kevin."

A good-looking blond young man of about 18 stuck his head into the sitting room. "Hey, little Pete," he said with a crooked grin, tousling Peter's hair. Peter rolled his eyes.

"Mum's not home yet," he told his uncle, ducking out of reach.

"Not a problem," said Kevin. "I'll just make myself at home."

_Yeah, I know,_ Peter thought, escaping to his bedroom. He heard the radio blaring the evening's football game as he shut the door and picked up a comic book.

About half an hour later, Peter was about to find out how that mad Muggle, Martin Miggs, would escape from the dungeon of a Muggle warlord after a wayward Time-Turner Martin had stumbled upon had landed him somewhere in about the tenth century. Without so much as an _Alohomora_ to help him, Peter saw no way out for Martin. Peter was so absorbed that he didn't hear the door open until his mother's voice carried up the stairs.

"Kevin! Oh, sweetie, it's so good to see you!"

"Hey, big sis, mind if I stay for supper?"

"Of course; we won't eat until Dashall gets home, but are you hungry now? I can at least put on some tea, or I think we have a few biscuits—"

His mother's high-pitched tones of excitement jarred Peter from the castle dungeon where Martin Miggs was making friends with one of the dungeon rats, secretly an Animagus in disguise. He tuned into the conversation downstairs for a few moments.

"Oh, no, don't worry, Laura; I'm not that hungry yet."

_Yeah, because you've already eaten the biscuits,_ Peter finished silently, going back to his comic. Before Martin's new friend could steal the key from the jailor's belt, however, Peter was interrupted once more.

"Peter! Come down here and get your muddy galoshes off the rug! How many times have I told you to leave them by the door?"

Peter sighed and rolled off his bed. He wandered downstairs and moved his boots the meter from the edge of the sitting room to the entrance mat. "Peter, I need you to set the table for supper," said his mother. "Don't forget an extra place for Uncle Kevin."

Peter trudged into the kitchen as his mother turned back to her baby brother. "So how is university in London, Kevin?"

"Oh, you know, boring classes, beautiful girls, parties every night," Kevin drawled, running a hand carelessly through his hair as Peter's mother laughed. Peter turned his head at that laugh and gave a wistful glance toward his mother's face as she stared at Kevin.

"I hope you're keeping up with your classes, though?" she asked anxiously. "Not getting into trouble, are you?"

"Trouble, me?" Kevin laughed facetiously. "Honestly, Laura, you're as bad as Mum sometimes." He quickly launched into a story about a friend of his and a particularly awful dinner date, as Peter tuned out, laying out the silverware and dreaming about time-traveling adventures of his own, from which he returned as a man, handsome and worldly, who could capture his mother's attention with one smile and invite that silvery laugh.

* * *

Lily Evans was sitting in a tree. Crouched on a low, thick bow of a strong, snow-covered conifer in back of her house, she kept close watch on the ground below, white and littered with brown needles. After a few minutes, she spotted her quarry. Lily smiled to herself as a small black-haired boy glanced around as he neared the tree, then stopped underneath it, pondering his next move.

Suddenly Lily slipped on the wet wood, barely managing to keep her balance as a large dollop of snow plummeted onto her friend's head. Severus Snape glanced up at the small sound, and the white mushy clump plopped onto his face as he yelped in surprise. Lily laughed, her hiding place discovered, and dropped lightly to the ground.

"You found me. Let's play something else; hide-and-seek's no fun with only two."

Severus shrugged and smiled. "Whatever you want, Lily."

Lily grinned mischievously. "Whatever I want, huh?" Severus followed curiously as she turned her back on him and walked away. Suddenly Lily scooped up a handful of snow and pelted it at her friend. Severus froze, then grabbed some snow and tossed it back half-heartedly. Lily laughed. "What was that?"

She hit him again, harder. Severus grinned and hit her back in earnest, and a full-blown snowball fight began. At one point, Lily skidded on a patch of ice as she raced after Severus, and she toppled to the ground on top of him. The two breathless children stared at each other for a moment before Lily jumped up and danced away again. Severus lay in the snow for a moment, his black coat contrasting starkly with the whiteness on the ground. His black eyes were alight with excitement as he watched her lithe figure skipping across the garden. With a laugh he picked himself up and ran to join her.

Lily halted underneath the big pine tree and knelt on the dry carpet of needles in the shelter of its evergreen branches. Severus caught her up and flopped down beside her, breathless and beaming. Lily smiled back at him somewhat wistfully. "This is fun," she remarked. "I wish we could play like this more often."

Severus faltered under the suddenly penetrating gaze of her green eyes. "Yeah," he said with a smile that looked more like a grimace. "I guess at school…I dunno."

"Alice was right," Lily said softly. "It's hard sometimes. I don't dare talk to you when your other friends are around. They don't seem to like me very much, do they?"

"No, they like you, they just—" Severus struggled for words and picked apart a pine cone. He knew she was right. "It's just too bad!" he said finally, chucking the pine cone across the garden. "You should have been a Slytherin."

Lily shrugged. "Want to come inside?" she offered, getting to her feet. "I bet my mum would make us some tea." She held out a hand to Severus.

Severus took her hand. As he stood and faced her, she smiled at him, and it seemed to Severus that, whatever might happen in the future, for this moment, there was peace on earth, reflected in the depths of her eyes.

**A/N: I hope you enjoyed that, everyone! Please, tell me what you think, especially if there's anything I can improve. Thank you and I hope 2009 will be a great year for all of us! ~ Lily Lorelei**


	6. Chapter 6: Mysterious Disappearances

**A/N: Okay, let me see a show of hands: who's got snow where you are? We have about a foot and a half at my house, and our high today is 4 degrees F, with the result that I have no school. Thanks to my unexpected free time and the return of my wayfaring muse, I was able to finish Chapter 6! Quickly before you dive in, I'd like to thank Phankam and l8rg8r123 for their reviews, Phankam also for favoriting this story and putting it on alert, and Strawberriekiwi for putting it on alert! You guys made my day!**

**Chapter 6: Mysterious Disappearances**

Lily stepped off of the train at Hogsmeade station and looked around her with a happy smile. Despite the drear and rain that greeted her, Lily was glad to be back at school. She followed her friends to the carriages that would take them up to the castle. As they rattled their way up the cobblestones, Lily settled into her seat with a contented sigh.

"It's good to be back, isn't it?" Alice said.

"I have a feeling this term is going to be an exciting one," said Mimi, bouncing on the cushion. The others nodded in agreement.

"My birthday's coming, so that'll be the highlight of the term for sure," Lily joked.

"Your birthday? When?" Alice asked.

"January 30th. I'm a little sad I won't be able to have a party with my family, but it'll be fun to have a birthday here at school."

Mimi grinned mischievously. "Well, we'll just have to do something about that, won't we?"

* * *

James jolted upright in his bed, gasping for breath. _It was just a dream,_ he told himself, opening the bed hangings and glancing around. It was the dead of night, but the full moon was shining through the window, filling the dormitory with silver light. _It was just a dream,_ he repeated. _Just a dream. You're safe, your friends are safe; they're all right here._ As he caught his breath and calmed himself, James made a visual sweep of the room to confirm his mantra. Sirius' bed curtains were wide open, giving James a full and quite unnecessary view of his best friend, who, despite the frigid night, had grown hot from the stifling fire in the room and had kicked off his blankets to reveal his scrawny body in his favorite nightclothes—or lack thereof.

Sirius clad only in boxers was enough to convince James that he was in fact awake, but he continued perusing the room. Peter's hangings were closed, but the loud snoring from within confirmed his presence. Remus' curtains were also firmly shut, but his bed was silent. James frowned and shook himself. _He's in there, of course he is. He's just asleep, and you should be too._ Still, something niggled at him, so James crept out of bed ever so silently, and peeked through the hangings to see—nothing.

Remus' bed was empty. Panic gripped James. _It was just a dream, stupid,_ he told himself firmly. _Remus probably went to the bathroom or something. Go back to sleep._ James stumbled back to his own bed and pulled the blankets around his chin. He left the curtains open, however, and stared at Remus' bed, awaiting his friend's return.

* * *

Remus winced with every step as he limped wearily up the stairs to his dormitory, racing the dawn. He stumbled and nearly cried out as he stubbed his toe on a rough spot. Finally he reached the top, nearly crippled with exhaustion, and crept silently into the room to catch a few precious hours of sleep before breakfast.

Remus' eyes widened when he saw his curtains open and James' tousled black head facing his bed. He crossed the room quickly and gave a sigh of relief when he saw James' eyes firmly shut; his friend was asleep. Remus slipped under the covers, shut the curtains and soon joined him.

James blinked open his eyes in the sunlight of Sunday morning. He had fallen asleep again. The hangings were shut on Remus' bed. James swung his feet to the floor and twitched the hangings open. Remus' exhausted, sleeping face greeted him. James frowned at the cuts and bruises his friend had somehow acquired during the night. These, combined with the dark circles under Remus' eyes, proved to James that his friend's excursion had been farther than the loo. James resolved to question Remus about the matter later, but for the time being, he let the hangings fall shut again and left his friend to sleep.

* * *

"Professor Vance?" Lily knocked hesitantly on the door of the young Defense professor's office. Receiving no answer, she knocked again, harder: silence. "Professor Vance? I have a question about the essay…" Lily pushed gently on the door, which opened with a creak.

The office was deserted. _Maybe she's in the staff room,_ Lily decided, heading off purposefully in that direction.

When Professor McGonagall met Lily at the door and told her Professor Vance was not in the staff room either, Lily was stumped. _Maybe she took a walk, _Lily mused, glancing doubtfully out the window at a misty greyness. _Oh well, I'll have to ask her later._ Lily took her essay and went to join her friends.

Lily found Mary, Alice, Asha and Mimi lounging on a rug in front of the fire in the common room, watching Sirius and Peter, who were engaged in a loud, smelly game of Gobstones. Lily knelt to join them, but out of the corner of her eye she spotted two figures huddled in a corner, speaking in whispers. Lily couldn't help but listen in.

"Don't give me that, you were all beat up. C'mon, what happened?"

"Nothing, James, I told you. I was visiting my grandmother. I fell down some stairs, that's all. I'm fine."

"Rubbish," James burst out angrily, hazel eyes flashing with sudden frustration at his friend. "Remus," he entreated. "Remus, please. You can trust me."

Remus avoided James' eyes and caught Lily's instead. His eyes widened. Lily flushed and turned away quickly, leaning into the game and laughing much too enthusiastically as Peter made a wrong move and got a face full of the disgusting liquid.

* * *

It was lunchtime the next day, a Monday in mid-January, before Lily remembered her essay. All morning she had been pondering the alarming conversation which she had overheard the previous afternoon. Although Remus and Lily usually got along reasonably well (in fact, he was the only boy in her year and house with whom she usually deigned to hold conversation), he had been avoiding her ever since he had caught her eavesdropping. It was James who had taken her aside at breakfast that morning….

"Hey, Evans," he had said quietly, catching her sleeve as she had passed. "Can I have a word?"

Something about his tone had given Lily pause, preventing her from brushing him off as she usually would have. "What is it?"

"I know you heard me talking to Remus yesterday—"

"Is he all right? Did you find out what happened?" Lily could not help but ask.

"I—I don't—Look, I know you're probably worried, but can I ask you not to mention it to anyone else? Sirius, Peter and I will get him sorted, okay?"

Lily hesitated. "All right, then," she said finally.

James smiled in relief. "Thanks, princess."

Lily scowled and pulled her arm from his grasp. "That's Miss Evans to you, Potter."

.…"Lily? Lily? Earth to Lily." Mary waved a hand in front of Lily's face. Lily blinked. Lunch. Right. Her Defense essay!

"I forgot, I have to talk to Professor Vance," said Lily, glancing around and half standing up. "Is she still eating?"

"She's—hang on," said Mary, scanning the staff table. "She's not there."

"That's odd," said Lily, sitting down again. "I'll just catch her before class, I suppose."

"I'm sure your essay's fine, Lily," said Mimi, shoving a forkful of potatoes into her mouth. "It'll be better than mine, at any rate."

"If you would sit still for a half hour and write it, instead of jumping up every five minutes with some new distraction," Lily retorted. "You've got catsup on your chin."

* * *

"This is really odd. Where could she be?" Alice wondered a while later. The class was all assembled in the Defense classroom. The time for class to start had passed, and the only person missing was the professor.

Professor Vance, despite her youth (or perhaps because of it), kept a strict and well-ordered classroom. At the starting time, the students had all been sitting quietly at their desks, books and wands out, ready to begin. As the seconds ticked by on Lily's watch, however, one minute, two minutes, the first years grew more and more restless.

Finally, the unmistakable clicking footsteps of the professor could be heard echoing down the corridor. Matthew Donohue, standing watch at the door, hurtled back to his seat with a hushed, "She's coming!"

A moment later, Professor Emmeline Vance herself appeared in the doorway.

Whispers and curious glances were exchanged as the class noticed that not only was Professor Vance late, which fact in itself was impossible, but her appearance, which usually seemed impervious to wind and weather, was somewhat in disarray. There was mud on the hem of her robes, and her hair in its elegant knot was positively mussed.

"Settle down, then, class, settle down, please," said the professor, picking a stray leaf off her robes and quickly covering the meter or two from the door to her desk. "Pass up your essays due today, please, and make sure your names are on them. No last-minute editing, Miss Stewart, just your name; you had all weekend for this."

The professor's familiar no-nonsense attitude put most of the class back into focus, or at least subdued it to a quiet buzz, but Lily continued watching the professor curiously. Had those shadows under her eyes been there yesterday?

* * *

"Hey, Sirius, Peter, how's it going?" James slid into a seat across from his friends at dinner that evening.

"Hey, mate, where've you been?" Sirius asked. "I was looking for you."

"Where's Remus?" Peter asked.

"I convinced him to go to the hospital wing for that fall he took," James explained.

"Some fall it must've been," Sirius commented.

"You noticed, too?" James said quietly. Peter frowned curiously.

"If you ask me, he's hiding something," Sirius said, nodding.

James nodded in agreement. "But what could it be? Why won't he tell us?"

"We're his friends, right?" Peter said. "You don't think he's up to something, y'know…bad, do you?"

"No," said James immediately, shaking his head fervently. "He wouldn't."

Sirius thought about it. "He said he went to see family, right? And he came back all bruised up."

James frowned. "What are you on about?"

Sirius hesitated. "Well, he never does talk much about his home life…"

Peter's eyes widened. "You think they've been hitting him?"

"No way!" James exclaimed, almost forgetting to keep his voice down. "His own family?"

"Not everyone has a happy little home like yours, James," Sirius said grimly. "My own folks stick to shouting, but I know others who don't."

James looked a bit shocked. He was silent for a moment, considering. Peter turned to Sirius. "What should we do if you're right?"

"We have to tell someone!" James said, snapping out of his reverie. "We can't let him go back there."

"It's not that simple, James. I mean, they are his parents. You can't just take a kid away from his parents," Peter protested.

"If they're hitting him? There's gotta be a law against that."

"Technically, yes, but shouldn't Remus have a say in it first?"

"Peter, don't you want to help him?" Sirius asked.

Peter faltered. "Yeah, but…I just think we should talk to him first. He probably really loves his parents, no matter how they might treat him. Maybe he doesn't want to leave them."

"Or maybe we're wrong," James put in, although the more he thought about it, the more certain he became that there was no other option.

"Well, something's got to be done about it," said Sirius.

"I'm going to talk to him tonight," James decided. "Who's with me?"

Sirius agreed immediately. Peter sighed and consented also.

* * *

Meanwhile, another group of first-years was conspiring concerning a friend, but this conversation took a slightly more cheerful tone. Mary, Alice and Mimi had their heads together at the opposite end of the table and were whispering excitedly.

"So we know Lily will be safely distracted?" Alice asked.

"Yeah, Asha's taken her to the library to research the Transfiguration project they're doing together. She'll keep Lily occupied all evening," Mary replied with confidence.

"Oh, yeah, we should probably get started on that, Mary," said Mimi half-heartedly.

"Later," said Mary, waving a hand impatiently. "We've got bigger fish to fry."

"Ew," said Mimi. "I don't like fish." Mary glared at her.

"We're supposed to be discussing Lily's birthday," she said pointedly.

"Right," Alice agreed. "It's lucky she mentioned it, or we wouldn't have known. Come to think of it, when are your birthdays?"

"August," said Mimi, sticking her tongue out. "I'll be home."

"I had mine back in October," said Mary.

"What?" Alice said indignantly. "Why didn't you tell us?"

Mary shrugged. "Birthdays have never been a big deal in my family."

Alice shook her head in disapproval. "Anyway, back to Lily. Should we plan her a surprise party?"

"Of course; I thought that was a given," said Mimi. "It's not a birthday without a party."

"But where can we give a party?" Mary wondered. "Are we allowed?"

"How hard can it be?" Mimi asked.

"Well, what will we need?" Alice said, pulling a piece of parchment from her bag, along with a quill and ink. "Let's make a list."

* * *

"You ask him."

"You're coming with me."

"Yeah, but you're gonna ask him."

"Guys, I'll ask him, okay?" Peter strode confidently toward the table in the common room where a patched-up Remus sat alone. James and Sirius followed quickly. "Hey Remus," Peter said casually. Remus looked up, startled, and smiled widely.

"Oh, hi guys. I wondered where you were."

"We were at dinner," Sirius said in confusion. "Where did you think we'd be?"

Remus shrugged. There was silence for a moment. "Um, Peter wants to ask you something," said James, with a meaningful glance at Peter.

"I'm getting to it," Peter told him crossly. "Remus…look, you can't expect us to believe you got all beat up like that just by falling."

"But I did," Remus protested, paling.

"Remus, mate, you're the height of awesome and everything, but you're a horrible liar," said Sirius with a snort.

"Well, what do you think happened, then?" Remus retorted angrily, unable to disguise the fear in his voice. This confirmed once again his friends' suspicions. James and Sirius looked at Peter expectantly.

Peter sighed. "All right, fine. We think—we think it's your parents."

"My parents?" Remus was nonplussed. "What about them?"

"Well, they—y'know, are they—um…" Peter trailed off, at a loss. "Y'know." He waved an arm vaguely.

Remus realized what he meant and almost laughed out loud with relief. "Oh, that. No, they aren't hitting me."

His three friends let out their breath and laughed along with him. "Oh, good," said James. "I told them that wasn't it."

"Did not," Sirius protested.

"You know you thought that too," said Peter.

"So who did it, then?" asked James.

"No one did anything to me, James," said Remus. "I did it to myself." He smiled wryly at the truth of his lie.

"So what happened?" James insisted.

Remus' face closed like a stone door. "I fell. I told you."

The other three glanced at each other in confusion. "But—"

"Guys, please, just drop it," said Remus shortly. "Don't worry about me." He stood and left the room. James, Peter and Sirius watched him go, as clueless as they ever had been.

**A/N: Next chapter: will James, Sirius and Peter continue to investigate Remus' disappearances? How will the plans for Lily's birthday progress? And what exactly has Professor Vance been up to? U.S. citizens, have a good MLK day; enjoy the long weekend! ~Lily Lorelei**


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